Jets vying for 2016 NHL Heritage Classic

The sign on the north side of Investors Group Field on the University of Manitoba campus is worked on Thurs., Feb. 21, 2013 in Winnipeg, Man. The stadium will hold a test event in late May. (Kevin King/Winnipeg Sun)

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It could be a busy few months at the outdoor Investors Group Field over the winter of 2015-16.

The Winnipeg Football Club is in the running to host the 2015 Grey Cup at the new facility on the University of Manitoba campus in November 2015, and now True North Sports and Entertainment is in talks with the NHL to host an outdoor game featuring the Winnipeg Jets in early 2016.

Investors Group Field is scheduled to open in May, and the Bombers will play their first game at the 33,000-seat facility, a pre-season contest, on June 12 against the Toronto Argonauts.

The park has the ability to add temporary seating, and both the Grey Cup and an outdoor hockey game would require that. Outdoor games in Canada are known as Heritage Classics, while the ones in the U.S. are called Winter Classics.

There have been two Heritage Classics so far, with Edmonton hosting the first outdoor NHL game in 2003 and then Calgary following suit in 2011. The idea came from a 2001 outdoor game featuring the University of Michigan and Michigan State University at Spartan Stadium.

The first of five Winter Classics was held on Jan. 1, 2008, in Buffalo, featuring the Sabres and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The 2013 Winter Classic was supposed to have the Detroit Red Wings hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan Stadium, but it was postponed due to the lockout. It will be played on Jan. 1, 2014.

There have been rumblings about Winnipeg hosting an outdoor game ever since the Atlanta Thrashers moved to the Manitoba capital in May 2011 and became the Jets. Investors Group Field was supposed to be ready for the 2012 CFL season, but its opening was delayed by a year.

The big question will be who should the Jets host in an outdoor game?

Their closest rival at that time will likely be the Minnesota Wild, assuming NHL realignment finally takes place, although both Heritage Classics have featured two Canadian squads.

The only problem with that is the Jets won’t have any Canadian teams in their division, so it will likely end up being either the Calgary Flames, who are the closest geographically to Winnipeg, Edmonton or Vancouver.

The Canucks would make the most sense because the Manitoba Moose used to be their AHL affiliate and still might have a few former Moose players in their lineup. Then again, they probably wouldn’t like the cold very much in Winnipeg, where the average daytime January high is -11 C.

There are also plenty of Montreal Canadiens and Maple Leafs fans in Manitoba, too, so both of those squads could be options as well.